Exclusive: Kevin Phillips delivers verdict on potential Gibbs-Townsend headache at West Brom
We’re delighted to welcome former West Brom striker Kevin Phillips as our exclusive columnist. Each week he’ll be giving his views on the biggest talking points at The Hawthorns…
Kevin Phillips would rather see West Brom stick with Conor Townsend at left-back rather than Kieran Gibbs once the ex-Arsenal player is back from injury.
Gibbs, 30, has only managed to make 10 Championship appearances this season due to multiple injury setbacks and has not played for the Baggies since the draw with Leeds on New Years Day.
The experienced left-back is edging closer to full fitness though with the Express & Star reporting that he would have played for the Under-23s last Monday had the game against Norwich not been called off due to the weather.
Gibbs is getting closer to being available for selection once more but Phillips believes that the form of Townsend should keep the former Arsenal left-back out of the equation until there is a drop in form.
“In my opinion, I wouldn’t necessarily mess around with the team,” Phillips told West Brom News.
“When Gibbs is fit and raring to go it just depends what sort of run of results West Brom have had at that time. There are only 12 games left so why would you mess with the team at the moment when they’re putting in performances?
“They’re not going to win every game from now until the end of the season. I’m sure there’s going to be a slight blip – maybe in one or two games they might lose. But Kieran Gibbs will know Townsend has come in and done well and that’s all you can ask for as a manager.
“You lose one of your best players, can someone step up? Townsend has, so it would be very harsh to leave him out.
“But on the other side of that, do you revert to that little bit more experience? I’m not so sure.
“He’s playing so well at the moment so in my opinion, I wouldn’t mess around with it too much.”
West Brom have won four and drawn one of their last five Championship fixtures with Saturday’s win against Bristol City moving them nine points clear of third place.
Townsend has been superb during that run and it is hard to see Slaven Bilic dropping the 26-year-old any time soon.
However, as Phillips points out, Gibbs is a very experienced player and he has hardly put a foot wrong for West Brom when he has been available to play this season.
It is a tough decision for Bilic to have but we would rather him have this kind of decision than any other.
Bilic has a similar issue with Grady Diangana once he returns from injury too because Callum Robinson has been in fantastic form too.
In other West Brom news, Bilic has shared an updated on the injured Diangana.